Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley called the 2020 season a “throwaway year” for Temple. The Owls were hit hard during the pandemic. Hard.

Contract tracing paused fall camp and delayed full-padded tackling. By the time the season opener against Navy—also delayed because of COVID-19 protocols—rolled around, Temple was playing a combined eight true and redshirt freshmen. More COVID-19 issues and an array of injuries saw that number climb as the season wore on.

Things got so bad that now third-year head coach Rod Carey had to start Kamal Gray, a walk-on freshman. And behind Gray on the depth chart was wide receiver Branden Mack.

“They lost so many guys,” Hafley said Wednesday. “Their record is not indicative last year at all of how good this football team is.”

Temple finished the year 1-6 and ranked second-to-last in the American Athletic Conference in total offense and scoring offense. The Owls averaged fewer than 20 points per game.

It was a stark contrast from the first season of Carey’s stay in Philadelphia. He came over from Northern Illinois—after Manny Diaz jumped ship for the Miami job—and guided Temple to an 8-5 record and a Military Bowl appearance.

The Owls have stumbled out to a slow start this fall, too. They are 1-1 but, last weekend, found themselves down 14 points to Akron, a program that was a combined 1-17 in 2019-20. Temple rallied behind true freshman quarterback Justin Lynch, who was replacing injured starter and Georgia transfer D’Wan Mathis, for a 45-24 win.

It was a much-needed victory for the Owls, who were embarrassed, 62-14, in their season opener against Rutgers. Temple became the first FBS team to spot 60-plus points to Rutgers since 2008. But, when watching the tape, Hafley said he thought the game was significantly closer than the score suggested.

The second-year Eagles head coach explained that it’s difficult to prepare for a team like Temple that’s had such a turbulent year. The Owls added 11 transfers, nine of whom are from Power Five schools, so there are a lot of new faces.

“You really study not just the scheme but the personnel who’s there right now,” Hafley said. “These are early games. Sometimes they’re tricky because you’re relying on old film and old personnel. It’s like you like when you get to like Week 4 or 5, where everything you’re watching is actually everybody you’re going to see.”

As always, Hafley, a defensive-minded coach, has his eyes on the opposing offense. And he sees two quarterbacks who pose a threat.

The first is Mathis, who was named Temple’s starting quarterback this spring but missed last week’s game with a left foot/ankle injury. Carey said this week that the former Bulldog is day-to-day. Hafley noted Mathis’ height—he’s 6-foot-6—and said that he has “good feet” and a “really strong arm.” Mathis struggled with his accuracy against Rutgers, completing just 8-of-24 passes and throwing one interception. He did log 148 yards through the air and run for a score.

If he can’t go Saturday, Lynch will get the start again. He went 19-of-23 for 255 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Akron. He also added a score on the ground.

“Tough, good athlete,” Hafley said. “Just impressive for a freshman to come in and do what he did—that’s hard. I mean, really hard. So I have a lot of respect for him. I see a really bright future ahead for him. And we won’t take either of them for granted.”

Whoever is under center will have weapons at his disposal, namely a pair of dynamic receivers: Randle Jones and Jadan Blue.

Jones ignited Temple’s offense last weekend with a 70-yard jet sweep touchdown. The sixth-year graduate wide receiver ended the day with seven catches for a career-best 170 yards and a touchdown. Blue led the Owls in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in 2020 and was second in the AAC in catches per game (6.8). He can stretch the field, as he totaled five receptions of 40-plus yards last year.

“They have two receivers, 0 (Jones) and 5 (Blue), who I think will be NFL players—in the top half of the draft—and those guys could play anywhere in the ACC.”

BC linebacker Isaiah Graham-Mobley, an Upper Merion, Pennsylvania native who played the first five years of his career at Temple, discussed Tuesday how Temple adopts the underdog mentality.

On a national level, BC will be seen that way in a few weeks without starting quarterback Phil Jurkovec. Saturday is the Eagles’ first test to prove that they’re the same ACC dark horse with Dennis Grosel under center.